Civil Rule Proposal Could Streamline Social Security Reviews

New instructions for cases involving Social Security disability benefit reviews proposed by the U.S. federal courts would deviate from a standard doctrine of judicial rulemaking while trying to simplify a cumbersome process.

The proposed change creating a uniform procedure for reviewing disability benefit decisions by the Social Security Administration would treat them as appeals rather than regular civil proceedings.

Under current rules, courts and individual judges can determine how those cases are handled. That has created a patchwork of procedures across the U.S. for the cases that makeup 7% to 8% of the civil docket, according to the civil advisory ...